First V PAY transaction in Austria
Successful start for the first truly pan-European, SEPA compliant debit card by Visa Europe
Salzburg/Vienna, 15 November 2006
The new Visa debit card V PAY celebrated its premiere in Austria today. The traditional shoe shop Denkstein in the famous Getreidegasse in Salzburg was scene of the first V PAY transaction in Austria. After entering the PIN at the shop’s EMV terminal, Jutta Müller-Liefeld, Country Manager Austria at Visa Europe completed the transaction and hobex AG carried out the transaction successfully .“The Austrian card payment market is now being prepared for the launch of V PAY step by step. The starting signal was today. We thus meet the needs of 21st century Europe and introduce new possibilities for replacing cash by card payments,” stated Jutta Müller-Liefeld.
Hubert Neumayr, CEO of hobex AG, added: “We are pleased that we are the first Austrian provider to process V PAY. Therefore we are paving the way for the entry of the European debit solution in Austria.”
V PAY is Visa Europe’s new chip and PIN only pan-European, SEPA-compliant (Single Euro Payments Area) debit card, allowing cardholders to make safe and convenient domestic and cross-border payments anywhere in Europe.
“With the launch of V PAY, Visa Europe underlines its commitment for a Single Euro Payments Area and sets the basis for fair competition in the Austrian and European debit market,” Jutta Müller-Liefeld concluded.
Visa Europe cooperates closely with the issuers to establish V PAY in the Austrian market and is compliant with the SEPA Cards Framework principles. Contributing to the creation of a well-functioning European payments market is one of Visa Europe’s top priorities and with the development of V PAY as a true pan-European debit product, Visa Europe is demonstrating its commitment to making SEPA a reality across the region.
V PAY is always chip, always PIN, which means an optimal level of security and issuer control with minimal fraud losses. It builds on the investment of the European banks in EMV infrastructure across Europe, and provides local and European governance. V PAY cards can be accepted at over three million POS terminals and 180 thousand ATMs across Europe.
The first V PAY transaction in Austria took place on November 15, 2006 at Denkstein in Salzburg’s Getreidegasse with the attendance of Annika Karlsson Hill, Vice-President Visa Europe, Jutta Müller-Liefeld, Country Manager Austria, Visa Europe and Hubert Neumayr, CEO hobex AG.
**Ends**
V PAY benefits at a glance:
- Is an EMV chip and PIN only debit product
- Is compatible with local market account numbering structures. That means issuers, acquirers and merchants in those markets can use their existing systems and infrastructure with minimal changes
- Can be co-badged with domestic debit brands
- Option to carry the PLUS mark enabling global access to ATMs
Additional editorial information: acquirers committed to V PAY:
- Austria: hobex AG, VISA-SERVICE Kreditkarten AG
- Belgium: BCC, euroConex
- Czech Republic: Ceska sporitelna, Komercni Banka , CSOB
- Estonia: Hansapank
- Finland: Luottokunta
- France: Carte Bleue acquirers
- Germany: B+S Card Service, Concardis, euroConex
- Greece: Alpha Bank, Piraeus Bank, Emporiki
- Hungary: OTP, K&H
- Ireland: AIB, Bank of Ireland
- Italy: Setefi, Deutsche Bank, CartaSi, Banca Antonveneta, BNL
- Latvia: Hansabanka
- Lithuania: SEB Vilnius
- Poland: Polcard, Cardpoint
- Portugal: UNICRE
- Slovakia: Tatrabanka
- Slovenia: Banka Koper
- Spain: Servired, Sistema 4B, EURO6000
- Switzerland: Telekurs, Aduno
- Turkey: Ak Bank, Is Bank, Garanti Bank, Yapi Kredi
- UK: Streamline
About Visa Europe
In Europe, there are over 315 million Visa debit, credit and commercial cards. In the 12 months ending June 2006, those cards were used to make purchases and cash withdrawals to the value of over €1.19 trillion.Visa Europe is a membership association - an organisation owned and operated by its 4,500 European member banks. As a dedicated European organisation it is able to respond quickly to the specific market needs of European banks and their customers – cardholders and retailers, and to meet the European Commission’s objective to create a true internal market for payments Visa Europe is a part owner of Visa International, the organisation that ensures global interoperability of products as well as management of the Visa brand.
In October 2006, Visa announced that it intends to restructure its entire worldwide organisation except Europe in order to create a new public global corporation called Visa Inc. As a part of this restructuring, Visa Europe will remain a membership association with an exclusive license in Europe.
Globally Visa is one of the world’s leading payment brands and has unsurpassed acceptance at approximately 24 million acceptance locations including one million ATMs.
For more information, visit
www.visaeurope.com.
About hobex
hobex AG offers in co-operation with bank partners (Raiffeisen Bank Group Austria, Salzburg München Bank, ABN AMRO Bank Holland) services for cashless payments – from electronic payment processes to loyalty cards with payment function.hobex was founded in 1991 as 100-percent-daughter of the hogast purchasing co-operative for hotel and restaurant industry. The aim was to offer a more cost-efficient, simpler and faster possibility of cashless means of payments to member institutes. Payments are effected via direct debit authorisation on behalf of the Raiffeisen organisation Salzburg.
About 15,000 customer terminals are in use in the tourism and retail industry, via these terminals about 15 million transactions are done per year. hobex AG is owned to 90 percent by Austrian banks, ten percent holds the purchasing co-operative hogast.
For more information, visit
www.hobex.at